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Unread 02/24/2009, 08:07 AM   #1
dean1977
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Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: south jersey
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Cleaning Sand

Whats the best way to clean reef sand from an old tank to put into a new tank. It's about a 4 inch bed in a 75 gal tank.
Thanks


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Unread 02/24/2009, 09:53 AM   #2
maypo59
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Location: Central Kentucky
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I just had to do this, thanks to the ice storm that killed everything in my tank.

Though my sand wasn't quite as deep, the procedure is the same I would think.

I placed the sand in 17 gallon tubs (2 of them, it all fits in 1, but then you cant move it or do anything with it). Rinsed with FW. A LOT. probably over the coarse of the 3 hours or so I put into it, I ran a couple hundred gallons through it.. I sieved it with a colander to get out all the larger calcifications, old shells, etc.. this came out of a tank that had been up for 12 years... put about 4 cups of bleach into each container, filled with enough FW to cover sand by an inch or three.. let sit for a few days.. rinsed well one more time, looks like new out of the bag sand again.. I will not be setting the tank up again for a couple more weeks, will rinse well one more time before putting back in the tank. Don't worry about the bleach to much, while it will have SOME residual value for a while, after rinsing well and sitting for a few days, it will have disipated to safe levels.


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75 gallon display, 40 gallon fuge/sump in basement. Running wonderfully from 1995, until the ice storm of '09.. back on line Sept '12 after 3 1/2 years of mourning.
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Unread 02/24/2009, 11:57 AM   #3
fireman676
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Here is how melev says to do it.....

http://www.melevsreef.com/rinsing_sand.html

the last time i did it in the bathtub because it was too cold to do it outside. i didnt use any bleach just gallons and gallons of water.


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Current Tank Info: Oceanic 75 gal RR, 20 gal fuge
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Unread 02/24/2009, 02:57 PM   #4
dean1977
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thanks for the info and the link. I think after I clean it I might let it sit for a few days if not longer(i'm in no rush). I'm worried about the phosphates in my tap water and stuff like that, but it's way too much RO water.


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